Posts [ 4 ]

Topic: Aspartame having effect on my Epilepsy?

Hmm. Hey everyone, i'm going to try and make this as short as possible, but it may wind up being long anyway because i need to add a history section to start it.

i was diagnosed with severe epilepsy a little over 9yrs ago. through trial and error the doctors were able to find the right medication level to stabilize my seizures about 3 yrs ago.

Now to begin my symptoms it must be noted that this happens ONLY during two situations when im either trying to wake up, or go to sleep.

Lately i've been experiencing seizure like symptoms with out the seizure (believe me i know when i'm having a seizure), and its very odd. it some times make come randomly but usually starts out with what i call a *warning* sign which is a series of electric jolts that go throughout my whole body every few minutes for a period of time, in some instances causing me to jump. debndi7 described something similar in the "SYMPTOMS NOT READ ABOUT" thread.

after the electric "jolts" sometimes i will go to sleep while other times i will fall into a state of "paralysis" where although i can see, i cannot move and its extremely hard to breathe. during these times it feels like i get stuck between dreams and reality. As if 1/2 of my body is asleep (we'll say body) and i'm awake (i). Although i'm awake and can see (my eyes are open and i can look around the room) my body is still asleep so the things i see are like a hallucination. my most vivid one was where i entered the "paralysis" state and i saw a light as if someone was shining a flashlight from my window to my face, of course i'm going out of my mind because i can't move and i'm thinking someone is about to break in. but the light gets brighter to the point of where i need to close my eyes to avoid it and it goes away. But i'm not out of the "paralysis" state yet so all i can do is look around. then the light comes back on and is so bright i feel like im going to go blind, this time when i close my eyes the light doesn't go away, until i gain full control of my body and am able to sit up in a cold sweat and get a proper look and see there's nothing there. Really sucks thinking that your house is going to be broken into while you can't move or breathe. It should be noted that these paralysis can last from anywhere from 1 - 20 min since i have no concept of time.

I've talked to my doctor who made an appt for me to see my neurologist, and said it sounded to him like a form of "sleep paralysis?" Also, my short term memory is just that. Short. about a short as the small chances of winning the lottery 10x in a row. However my wife was looking up Aspartame and the side effects which lead us here.

She had been wanting me to lose weight and noted that yogurt worked for her, and i got hooked on a meal suppressor drink. not to mention i may be diabetic so im prone to get anything "sugar free" without noting the sweetener used. Though the yougurt i eat a lot of "Yoplait" and the hunger suppressor from Walmart both contain Aspartame.

P.S. don't know if this is another symptom, but i'm used to having a headache. comes with the territory of being epileptic, however my usual headache has been around 2 - 3 (on a scale of 1 - 10) for years. but lately it sticks around 4 - 7 sometimes even reaching a migraine which can last a few days.

Re: Aspartame having effect on my Epilepsy?

Zerokewl - your situation is a very serious and life-changing one, but you are on track to research and consider everything that may be at the root of your epilepsy and to uncover any and everything that is making the situation worse and not better.

Aspartame is at the root of both.

Anytime a health situation like this is present and food chemicals are used, particularly the prolific diet sweetener chemicals, ALWAYS stop the chemicals! Aspartame has been proven in enough research studies to harm the human body, causing nerve and brain damage, lesions in the brain tissue, and organ damage. Definitely stop using ALL diet chemicals, and avoid all food chemicals such as food colorings, MSG, and most artificial preservatives.

Feed your body real foods, preferably as raw as you can get, and take good supplements to assist your body at a time when it is weak. Build your strengths, not the weaknesses. Aspartame builds on the weaknesses.

Re: Aspartame having effect on my Epilepsy?

so far we have given the yogurts to family members. since they're adults and don't usually eat yogurt hopefully it won't have an effect on them. But the unopened drinks will be returned

I found out that "sleep paralysis" is a real condition and if im correct the aspartame can make it worse. I read that the average person may experience sleep paralysis once or twice in their lifetime if at all, while for me in a "bad night" i can go through 5+ episodes, some times back to back. It's gotten to the point where i can break free by sheer physical will, yet other times its so bad i have to let my self "fall back asleep" so i can try to "wake up" again.

i had some blood work done for my normal dilantin level check, so when my neurologist reads them to me i'm going to ask him to check for aspartame poisoning.

Re: Aspartame having effect on my Epilepsy?

Sadly, aspartame poisoning will not show up in a way your doctor will recognize it, unless, he is really on top of the aspartame issue. He'll need to check for methanol in your body, formaldehyde levels, increased liver enzymes. If you are using aspartame and are experiencing these health symptoms, you should stop using all aspartame immediately and see if these symptoms lessen for you.

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